Substituting soya nuts for other protein sources in a healthy diet appears to lower blood pressure in postmenopausal women, and also may reduce cholesterol levels in women with high blood pressure, according to a report in the May 28, 2007, issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

Women with high blood pressure have four times the risk of heart disease as women with normal blood pressure.

Researchers from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre, Boston, assigned 60 healthy post-menopausal women to eat two diets for eight weeks each in random order. The first diet, the Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes (TLC) diet, consisted of 30 percent of calories from fat (with 7 percent or less from saturated fat), 15 percent from protein and 55 percent from carbohydrates; 1,200 milligrams of calcium per day; two meals of fatty fish (such as salmon or tuna) per week; and less than 200 milligrams of cholesterol per day. The other diet had the same calorie, fat and protein content, but the women were instructed to replace 25 grams of protein with one-half cup of unsalted soya nuts.

Blood pressure and blood samples for cholesterol testing were taken at the beginning and end of each eight-week period. At the beginning of the study, 12 women had high blood pressure (140/90 milligrams of mercury or higher) and 48 had normal blood pressure. Soya nut supplementation significantly reduced systolic (top number) and diastolic (bottom number) blood pressure in all 12 hypertensive women and in 40 of the 48 other women.

In women with high blood pressure, the soya diet also decreased levels of low-density lipoprotein (“bad”) cholesterol by an average of 11 percent. The researchers concluded that dietary soya may be a practical, safe and inexpensive modality to reduce blood pressure and could have important implications for reducing cardiovascular risk in postmenopausal women.

Although soya and the menopause have gone hand-in-hand in many Asian countries for thousands of years, in the United States and Europe there continues to be debate.

Typically, Asian women consume things such as tofu, miso, tempeh, soya sauce etc., taking in on average 200 milligrams daily. Research has shown that Asian woman tend to have fewer symptoms of the menopause and less severe symptoms and studies have been performed to determine if soya and menopause are indeed linked. What they have discovered is that the isoflavones in soya do have a hormone balancing effect. They can not only take the place of natural oestrogen and increase oestrogen levels when they are too low, but they can also reduce them when they are too high. This particular process is not fully understood but what is known is that regular consumption of soya can help ease or minimise menopause symptoms.

It is important to bear in mind that some of the studies performed indicate that the effect of the soya depends on the woman’s level of natural oestrogen while being consumed. For example, for a woman still having a normal menstrual cycle, the effects of soya showed little change. On the other hand, for women going through the change of life, it showed that the intake of soya increased the level of oestrogen. The result was fewer and less severe symptoms associated with menopause. With this, it appears soya and menopause is a good match.

In addition to the consumption of soya helping with hot flashes, it appears to have a protective effect on the heart. For instance, LDL, or bad cholesterol is also lowered. Again, the reason is not yet understood but somehow, soya helps by keeping the cholesterol within a range considered healthy. With this, a woman’s risk of stroke and heart attack is also reduced. However, there is more regarding soya and menopause. Other studies show that the isoflavones in soya keeps muscle cells strong, which reduces the woman’s risk of developing atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries and other research shows that soya may contain compounds that can inhibit breast and endometrial cancer (often due to excess oestrogen), fibroids, high blood pressure and osteoporosis.

With so many potential health benefits for women including soya in your diet is a sensible option for women, particularly if you are approaching menopause. If you’re going to include soya in your diet make sure you include good sources. There’s been some concern in recent years about aluminium levels in soya which have been linked to Alzheimer’s disease. However, this is only when soya is eaten in excess.

Eaten in moderation – say four or five times a week – soya can reduce cholesterol levels, protect against heart disease and encourage hormonal balance in women going through menopause or peri-menopuase. The best way to eat soya is in its traditional form, avoid snack bars which may contain raw soya and avoid any soya products which contain soya isolate as these are not made from the whole soya beans. Also make sure you only buy soya products which are organic otherwise they could be genetically modified.

It’s well known that cranberries can help protect against cystitis but there are other foods for women with disease fighting properties:

1. Papaya. This tropical fruit packs about twice the vitamin C of an orange. After analyzing the blood of over 13,000 people, scientists from the University of California, San Francisco, found that women who had lower levels of vitamin C were more likely to have gallbladder illnesses. One medium papaya (about ten ounces), with its 188 mg of vitamin C and a mere 119 calories, is a good source of the vitamin. The once exotic fruit now can be found in most supermarkets.
2. Flaxseed. Rich in oestrogen-like compounds called lignans which are a potential weapon against that lady killer breast cancer. You can add flaxseeds (also called linseeds) to cakes and bread, but the easiest and healthiest way to get the beneficial lignans is to sprinkle a few tablespoons of ground flaxseed on your morning cereal. Look for the seeds in health food stores or in supermarkets and buy organic ones. They’re easy to grind in a blender or coffee grinder or you can get them ready ground in a vacuum pack and then store them in the fridge. Buy the seeds if you want the lignan-effect as there are no lignans in the oil.
3. Tofu. Foods high in soya protein can lower cholesterol and may minimize menopausal hot flushes and strengthen bone. Isoflavones, plant chemicals in soya beans that have a structure similar to oestrogen, may be the reason. A half-cup of tofu contains about 25 to 35 mg of isoflavones. Other beans like lentils, chickpeas, kidney beans etc are a good source of isoflavones too.
4. Collard Greens. This humble vegetable may help fight osteoporosis, which afflicts many women late in life. In addition to getting adequate amounts of calcium and vitamin D, some studies suggest that vitamin K may have a bone-protective effect as well. Based on data from one of the largest studies of women, the Nurses’ Health Study, researchers discovered that women who ate enough vitamin K-rich foods (at least 109 micrograms of the vitamin daily) were 30 percent less likely to suffer a hip fracture during ten years of follow-up than women who ate less. The researchers stated that dark-green leafy vegetables — Brussels sprouts, spinach, broccoli — are all good sources of the vitamin. But collard greens, with about 375 micrograms per half-cup, are among the best.